Money demands stall next Pavlik bout

By Joe Scalzo

Winky Wright and Paul Williams are among the contenders.

More than a month after Kelly Pavlik’s first middleweight title defense, his next opponent remains a mystery — and that might not change for awhile.

Not surprisingly, the biggest issue is money.

The two most attractive opponents for Pavlik are 36-year-old middleweight Ronald “Winky” Wright and WBO welterweight champion Paul Williams. Both have made money demands that the Pavlik camp deem unreasonable.

Middleweight contender John Duddy of Ireland, who was in line to fight Pavlik in June before sustaining cuts in his last fight, and WBC No. 1 contender Marco Antonio Rubio of Mexico are also in consideration, although Duddy is considering moving down a weight class.

Wright (51-4-1, 25 KOs), who is trained by Austintown native Dan Birmingham, is the former undisputed light middleweight champion. He has not fought since last July when he lost a unanimous decision to Bernard Hopkins.

Williams (34-1, 25 KOs) is coming off a first-round knockout of Carlos Quintana last month. Quintana defeated Williams by unanimous decision in February.

Duddy (25-0, 17 KOs) earned a unanimous decision over Charles Howe two weeks ago in Boston and has looked unimpressive in his last two bouts.

Rubio (42-4-1, 37 KOs) has won eight straight fights but has the lowest name recognition among the four fighters.

Rising gas prices and a sluggish economy have hurt boxing and shrunk purses, leading to a standstill with prospective opponents, said Pavlik’s co-manager, Cameron Dunkin.

“Things are changing right in front of our face,” said Dunkin. “There’s not going to be a budget for this crazy stuff [purses]. It’s just not there anymore.

“They’re [other fighters] going to get a dose of reality real quick.”

Pavlik’s handlers don’t want the middleweight champ to take a pay cut for his next bout — Pavlik earned $2.5 million for his victory over Gary Lockett last month — and if they can’t come to an agreement with an opponent soon, they’re prepared to wait until the end of the year for his next bout.

“You know Kelly will kill himself for two months to get ready for his fight,” Dunkin said. “He’s a young guy, he’s 26 years old, but that [workouts] tears you up.

“I’m not going to risk his health if the situation isn’t right. He’s been fighting at a pretty rapid pace, anyway. There’s no reason to jump on anything.”

Dunkin wants Pavlik to fight in Ohio, but the only way that would happen would be with a Rubio bout on pay-per-view in Cleveland. Top Rank president Bob Arum is reluctant to make that fight because he’s worried a large fight-night crowd, combined with an unknown, underdog opponent would erode TV sales.

If Pavlik fights one of the other three, it would most likely take place Sept. 27 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. That was the site of Pavlik’s fight against Lockett and his first fight with Jermain Taylor.

scalzo@vindy.com